Subject: I found an alien Geographic location of the bug: Bradenton, Fl Date: 01/15/2019 Time: 04:38 PM EDT Your letter to the bugman: Hello! I found this fella by my porch steps. He moves fairly quick and had a couple peek-a-boo sections in his body (shown). How you want your letter signed: Curious Bradentuckian

Lappet Moth Caterpiller

Dear Curious Bradentuckian, This is a Lappet Moth Caterpillar, possibly from the genus Tolype which is pictured on BugGuide, or possibly the caterpillar of a Dot Lined White also pictured on BugGuide. BugGuide states: “Larva: excellent twig mimic – body mottled gray and whitish with black markings and fringe of sublateral hairs; displays pair of dark bars between thoracic segments when crawling or disturbed.” This is a native species, not an alien.

Subject: I’ve never seen anything like this bug Geographic location of the bug: McKinney Texas Date: 01/07/2019 Time: 04:23 PM EDT Your letter to the bugman: I found this bug when working on my foundation. I thought it was a tool at first, I put it on my workbench outside. This AM when I started working outside I found it again and wondered how it fell off the bench and made it that far away. I put it back on the bench and got back to work, about an hour later I saw it moving… a lot. I put it back where I got it from. I had that thing close to my face, smelled it and everything…. gave me the creeps after I found out it was a bug. If you look at it closely the little pattern resembled a decoration you might find on an older tool’s handle. How you want your letter signed: Paul in McKinney

Giant Silkmoth Pupa

Dear Paul, This is a moth Pupa, the intermediate state between the caterpillar and the adult during which time metamorphosis occurs. Large moth pupae found underground are generally members of two families: Sphingidae the Sphinx Moths and Saturniidae the Giant Silkmoths. We believe your pupa is a member of the latter family, but we cannot provide an exact species identification. We do not believe it is an Imperial Moth or Regal Moth because it differs from these individuals posted to our site. Most members of the family found in Texas build a cocoon, but a number of species form a naked pupa underground like the one you discovered.

Subject: Unusual caterpillar Geographic location of the bug: Whangarei Heads, Northland, New Zealand Date: 01/05/2019 Time: 03:35 AM EDT Your letter to the bugman: We found this unusual caterpillar lying in the full sun on a walking track in about 27 degree heat. It appeared dead so tried flipping it over to help identify what it was and it objected by vigorously flipping itself back over not giving us a chance to see its underside. We decided to move it off the path and it curled itself onto a twig so that we could move it without touching it which enabled us to see its set of stumpy legs. We have never seen such a large caterpillar previously. How you want your letter signed: Phil

Hornworm

Dear Phil, This is a Hornworm, the larva of a Hawkmoth in the family Sphingidae. The common name Hornworm refers to the prominent caudal horn that most members of the family possess. Hornworms are harmless to people. We will attempt a species identification for you.

Update: Thanks to Bostjan Dvorak, we are please to provide a Convolvulus Hawkmoth which is pictured on T.E.R.R.A.I.N.

Subject: What type of worm? Male or female? Geographic location of the bug: Standerton Date: 12/31/2018 Time: 11:37 AM EDT Your letter to the bugman: Good day. Would like to know what type of worm it is? Is it a poisonous worm? How you want your letter signed: Email

Subject: The pumpkin seed looking bug Geographic location of the bug: Brownsville TX Date: 12/23/2018 Time: 10:54 PM EDT Your letter to the bugman: I have seen these things several times and at first thought it was a pumpkin seed, but as it began to crawl I figured it sooooo was NOT one!! I could really use your help, never seen one befor,. They just began appearing inside house, not all move though. I have tried looking them up, but have not found anything that might help. I also have a video of it moving. Thanks… How you want your letter signed: Odette

Case Bearing Moth Larva

Dear Odette, Because others have also compared its appearance to a pumpkin seed, we suspected correctly from your subject line that you were inquiring about a Case Bearing Moth Larva, a common household intruder found globally. In the home, they often feed on debris like shed pet hair, but they are also known to feed on pet foods and other organic materials.

Subject: unknown caterpillar in Australia Geographic location of the bug: Lismore, New South Wales Date: 12/19/2018 Time: 06:12 PM EDT Your letter to the bugman: Hi Bugman, Your site came up because my caterpillar looks just like your google images cover photo, but I can’t find him on your site (at least I don’t have time to go through over 200 pages looking. My caterpillar was on a gardenia bush. It is the beginning of summer here in the sub-tropics of northern NSW, Australia. This caterpillar may not be native to our area or to Australia; he could be an American? How you want your letter signed: Dianne T, Australia

Gardenia Bee Hawkmoth

Dear Dianne, Thanks so much for including a detail image of the caudal horn on this Hornworm, the larva of a Hawkmoth in the family Sphingidae. We quickly identified your caterpillar as a Gardenia Bee Hawkmoth Caterpillar thanks to images posted to Butterfly House where it states: “The caterpillars later become black, grey, or green, often with black lines across the back. The back of the head and the final claspers are covered in small white warts. The caterpillars have posterior horn shaped like a shallow ‘S’, and have white spiracles along each side outlined in red. The head colour varies from brown to green.”